Columns of the generic kind as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,711,054 or in U.S. Pat. No. 4,979,718 have an outer stand pipe of metal, a guide sleeve of plastic material, which extends only over part of the length of the stand pipe, being arranged in the latter's upper portion facing away from the bottom plate.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,152,646 has already proposed to shape such guide sleeves on their internal surface by broaching such that, spread over the circumference, partial cylinder surfaces are provided as guide surfaces with recesses in between them, in which a lubricant can be stored.